Support For Darrell Anderson & Agustin Aguayo
VETERANS FOR PEACE
Veterans Working Together for Peace & Justice Through Non-violence. Wage Peace!
Darrell Anderson
**Joined Army in Jan. 2003, received Purple Heart for injuries at roadside bomb
**Spent seven months in Iraq, when he was to be deployed back to Germany for another tour, he fled to Canada.
**Darrell will return to the United States to turn himself in to Fort Knox, Kentucky sometime in the next week.
Agustin Aguayo
**After one year of service, he realized he could “no longer in good conscience be a part of the Armed Services”
**Deployed to Iraq as a medic, where he refused to load his weapon
**Two years of trying to be recognized as a conscientious objector, he made the decision to go AWOL
On Agustin’s Return:
This is on shorter notice, as I just received the e-notice while putting together the information on Darrell, so if you can offer support, in person, Please Do!
On Tuesday the CO & war resister Agustin Aguayo will turn himself in at
Fort Irwin in California. I am in the process of drafting a press advisory, a press release, and a flyer and will send these to you as soon as they are approved by his attorneys, etc. Meanwhile, I have attached the press release and LA Times article from last week.
We hope for as much support from VFP and your allies for Agustin as you can muster. We know this is short notice, but Agustin (“Augie”) was originally going to turn himself in in October, and it was only decided on Thurs. night that he will do so this coming Tuesday.
Elsa Rassbach
Agustin Aguayo Support Website
Enlistee Flees Return to Iraq
Medic’s attorney and wife say he had been told he could be taken by force for a second tour. He seeks a discharge as a conscientious objector.
WASHINGTON — An Army enlistee from Los Angeles who escaped through a window in base housing and fled rather than face a second deployment to Iraq had been told that military commanders would send him into combat in handcuffs, if necessary, according to his wife and his attorney.
Army Spec. Agustin Aguayo, 35, has been missing since fleeing Sept. 2 but wants to turn himself in and would rather face prison than another tour of duty in Iraq or any other conflict, said his wife, Helga Aguayo, who recently moved back to California from Germany, where her husband was based.
On Darrell’s Return:
AWOL soldier says he wants to come home
Report: U.S. soldier who fled to Canada plans to return to face consequences
KY Soldier Plans To Return After Desertion From Army
Kentucky Army deserter plans to return from Canada
VFP Action Alert: Support Needed for Darrell Anderson
Dear Veterans For Peace Members, Associate Members, Supporters, Coalitions, Any and All, But Especially Veterans
We’ve been given a mission and we’re looking for volunteers. Iraq vet Darrell Anderson is coming home from Canada and we need as many veterans as possible to stand with him as he returns. We’ll be demanding that the Army discharge Darrell from service and help him to get treatment for his PTSD.
There are two events where VFPers can lend a hand:
Saturday, September 30th @ Noon
Lion-Sugarbowl Park, corner of Central Ave. and Gilmore Rd.
Fort Erie, Ontario, just across the border from Buffalo, NY
And
Tuesday, October 3rd @ Noon
Vigil at Fort Knox, KY
The first event will be to support Darrell shortly before his crossing back into the United States. The second one is to stand with Darrell as he returns to the Army. The exact location of the vigil at Fort Knox is yet to be determined, but it will be somewhere near the gate to the base. Anyone who can make it should please contact Darrell’s mother, Anita Dennis, for further details. Everyone is encouraged to attend either event. Arrangements can be made to help with transportation to and lodging in Kentucky:
Anita Dennis
Contact at these e-addresses:
Act For Peace or Resist With Darrell
Even if you can’t make it, emails of support for Darrell and his family would be greatly appreciated.
For more information on Darrell and the plight of the other resisters to this illegal war please check the VFP homepage and the links below. You may also contact Chris Snively with the VFP National Office for more information.
Thank you,
Chris Snively VFP National Office
AWOL in Canada ~ Darrell AndersonA Video from Darrell in Canada (a must see).
An Essay on Darrell by Peter Laufer at Huffingtonpost.Com
Darrell’s Support Website
You may also want to view these video’s, taken at the Canadian/U.S. border, also.
Peace Has No Borders ~ David Cline
A.W.O.L. in Canada ~ Ryan Johnson
A.W.O.L. in Canada ~ Christopher Mogwai
A.W.O.L. in Canada ~ Patrick & Jill Hart
A.W.O.L. in Canada ~ Christian Care
For The Troops:
An Appeal for Redress from the War in Iraq
Many active duty, reserve, and guard service members are concerned about the war in Iraq and support the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The Appeal for Redress provides a way in which individual service members can appeal to their member of Congress to urge an end to the U.S. military occupation. The Appeal will reach thousands of service members who seek redress from the war. The Appeal messages will be delivered to members of Congress on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January 2007.
The wording of the Appeal for Redress is short and simple. It is patriotic and respectful in tone:
“As a patriotic American proud to serve the nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq. Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home.”
The Appeal lists these grievances:
• The fabricated justification for war (nonexistent weapons of mass destruction)
• The failure to provide troops adequate protection and preparation for combat
• The human cost in thousands of deaths and severe injuries among American service members
• The cost to American taxpayers and diversion of resources from other priorities (inadequate response to Katrina, etc.)
Several organizations have come together to form a support committee to assist active duty service members. The organizations include Veterans for Peace, Iraq Veterans Against the War, and Military Families Speak Out. The committee serves at the discretion of active duty service members.
The Appeal for Redress will circulate initially among active duty service members in communities near military bases, beginning in Norfolk and Quantico. The Appeal will also circulate on the Internet through a web site with sign-on function to facilitate service member participation. An Internet message with the Appeal will be sent to thousands of individual service members, who will be encouraged to forward the message to others, in the hope that it goes viral.
Attorneys and counselors experienced in military law have been contacted to provide assistance for any service members who encounter interference with their right to communicate with members of Congress. Participating service members will receive a fact sheet describing the rights and restrictions that apply to the exercise of First Amendment rights in the military.
Members of Congress are being asked to encourage and
support the Appeal through a statement that reads:
“We respect and welcome this initiative from our brave men and women in uniform. We look forward to receiving the Appeals and sharing your important perspectives with colleagues in the Congress.”
Professional public relations assistance will be available to expose any interference with service member rights that occurs and to ensure that the Appeal for Redress attracts press attention at the time of delivery.
September 2006
Appeal for Redress, P.O. Box 53052, Washington, DC 20009-3052 Phone: 360-241-1414 • E-Mail Appeal for Redress
Appeal for Redress Site